Apollo
This is a fictional alternative history view of Apollo. The real Complete wikipedia article. is here. The Apollo program was the spaceflight effort carried out by the United States' National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), that landed the first humans on Earth's Moon. Conceived during the Presidency of Dwight D. Eisenhower, Apollo began in earnest after President John F. Kennedy proposed the national goal of "landing a man on the Moon and returning him safely to the Earth" by the end of the 1960s in a May 25, 1961 address to Congress. Kennedy's goal was accomplished with the Apollo 11 mission when astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed their Lunar Module (LM) on the Moon on July 20, 1969 and walked on its surface while Michael Collins remained in lunar orbit in the command spacecraft, and all three landed safely on Earth on July 24. Nine subsequent Apollo missions also landed astronauts on the Moon, the last in April 1974. In these 10 spaceflights, 20 men walked on the Moon. Apollo ran from 1961 to 1974, following the Mercury and Gemini programs. It used Saturn family rockets as launch vehicles. Apollo/Saturn vehicles were also used for an Apollo Applications program which consisted of three Skylab space station missions in 1974–75, and a joint U.S.–Soviet mission in 1976. Apollo was successful despite two major setbacks: the 1967 Apollo 1 cabin fire that killed the entire crew during a pre-launch test; and an in-flight failure on the 1970 Apollo 13 flight which disabled the command spacecraft's propulsion and life support, forcing the crew to use the Lunar Module as a "lifeboat" for these functions until they could return to Earth safely. Apollo set major milestones in human spaceflight. It stands as the first effort in sending manned missions beyond low Earth orbit; Apollo 8 was the first manned spacecraft to orbit another celestial body. The program spurred advances in many areas of technology incidental to rocketry and manned spaceflight, including avionics, telecommunications, and computers. Apollo also sparked interest in many fields of engineering and left many physical facilities and machines developed for the program as landmarks. Its command modules and other objects and artifacts are displayed throughout the world, notably in the Smithsonian's Air and Space Museums in Washington DC and at NASA's centers in Florida, Texas and Alabama. The Apollo 13 Command Module is housed at the Kansas Cosmosphere and Space Center in Hutchinson, Kansas. Crews and Missions Apollo 1 *'Crew:' Gus Grissom (1926-1967), Ed White II (1930-1967), Roger Chaffee (1935-1967) *Launch scheduled for February 21, 1967 *During a pre-launch test for Apollo 1, astronauts Grissom, White and Chaffee died when a fire broke out in the cockpit of their spacecraft on January 27, 1967. *Saturn 1b *Command module: CSM-012 Apollo 7 *'Crew:' Wally Schirra, Donn Eisele (1930-1987), Walt Cunningham *October 11-22, 1968 *The first launch of an Apollo spacecraft into Earth orbit. *Saturn 1b *Command module: CSM-101 Apollo 8 *'Crew:' Frank Borman, Jim Lovell, Bill Anders *December 21-27, 1968 *On Christmas Eve 1968, Apollo 8 was the first manned spacecraft to orbit the moon. *Saturn V *Command module: CSM-103 Apollo 9 *'Crew:' Jim McDivitt, Dave Scott, Rusty Schweickart *March 3-13, 1969 *Earth-orbit test of the Apollo comand and lunar modules including rendezvous maneuvers and a test of the new lunar space suit. *Saturn 1b *Command module: Gumdrop CSM-104 *Lunar module: Spider LM-3 Apollo 10 *'Crew:' Tom Stafford, John Young, Gene Cernan *May 18-26, 1969 *The dress rehearsal for the moon landing. *Saturn V *Command module: Charlie Brown CSM-106 *Lunar module: Snoopy LM-4 Apollo 11 *'Crew:' Neil Armstrong, Mike Collins. Buzz Aldrin *July 16-24, 1969 *The first lunar landing. -- Neil Armstrong: "That's one small step for a man - one giant leap for mankind." *Saturn V *Command module: Columbia CSM-107 *Lunar module: Eagle LM-5 Apollo 12 *'Crew:' Pete Conrad (1930-1999), ick Gordon, Al Bean *November 14-24, 1969 *First pinpoint lunar landing. Recovered parts of the Surveyor 3. Pete Conrad: "Man, that may have been a small one for Neil, but it's a long one for me." was only 5'6" tall *Saturn V *Command module: Yankee Clipper CM-108 *Lunar module: Intrepid LM-4 Apollo 13 *'Crew:' Jim Lovell, Jack Swigert (1931-1982), Fred Haise *April 11-17, 1970 *Apollo 13 ended in near disaster when oxygen tank 2 exploded 55 hours into the mission. Using the lunar module as a lifeboat, the three men were able to return safely to earth. *Saturn V *Command module: Odyssey CM-109 *Lunar module: Aquarius LM-7 Apollo 14 *'Crew:' Al Shepard (1923-1998), Stu Roosa (1933-1994), Ed Mitchell *January 31-February 9, 1971 *First successful mission devoted entirely to scientific exploration of the moon. Al Shepard took the first golf shot on the moon. Alan Shepard: "It's been a long way, but we're here." *Saturn V *Command module: Kitty Hawk CM-110 *Lunar module: Antares LM-8 Apollo 15 *'Crew:' Dave Scott, Al Worden, Jim Irwin (1930-1991) *July 26-August 7, 1971 *The first extended scientific expedition, also the first to use the Lunar Rover Vehicle. Irwin confirmed Galileo's theory that all object fall equally fast by dropping a feather and a hammer in the vacuum of the Moon. Dave Scott: "Man must explore. And this is exploration at its greatest." *Saturn V *Command module: Endeavour CM-112 *Lunar module: Falcon LM-10 Apollo 16 *'Crew:' John Young, Ken Mattingly, Charlie Duke *April 16-27, 1972 *The first exploration of the moon's central highlands. John Young: "There you are, mysterious and unknown Descartes highland plains. Apollo 16 is gonna change your image. I'm sure glad they got ol' Brer Rabbit here, back in the briar patch where he belongs. " *Saturn V *Command module: Casper CM-113 *Lunar module: Orion LM-11 Apollo 17 *'Crew:' Gene Cernan, Ron Evans (1933-1990), Jack Schmitt *December 7-19, 1972 *Jack Schmitt is a geologist trained to be an Astronaut. The first dedicated scientist on the Moon.Gene Cernan: "As I step off at the surface at Taurus-Littrow, I'd like to dedicate the first step of Apollo 17 to all those who made it possible." '' *Saturn V *Command module: America CM-114 *Lunar module: Challenger LM-12 Apollo 18 *'Crew:' Deke Slayton, Steve Ashby , Ken Mattingly. *April 5-18, 1973 *Explored the Tycho Crater floor and inside of the rim. Deke Slayton: ''"Beautiful, harsh, and unforgiving. Our first stepping stone into the stars." *Saturn V *Command module: Fortuna CM-115 *Lunar module: Kepler LM-14 Apollo 19 *'Crew:' John Glenn, Story Musgrave, Joe Engle *July 4-17, 1973 * Placed communication satellites in lunar orbit to eliminate the blackout suffered by the command module every 15 minutes. This also allowed landing on the farside of the Moon. The mission to Oceanus Procellarum the youngest known lava flows on the Moon. John Glenn We've come a long way from Mercury, we have a long way to go." *Saturn V *Command module: Columbine CM-116 *Lunar module: Atlas LM-15 Apollo 20 *'Crew:' Walter Cunningham, James McDivitt, Rusty Schweickart *October 25, November 7 1973 *The first farside mission. A commemorative copy of the Pink Floyd "Dark Side of the Moon" was carried down and returned to Earth. It is currently in the Smithsonian. Walter Cunningham: "Wow. It's unknown land indeed. You cannot even see this place from Earth." *Saturn V *Command module: Corona CM-117 *Lunar module: Quasar LM-16 Apollo 21 *'Crew:' Jim Lovell, Frank Borman, Joseph P. Kerwin, *April 9-20, 1974 *Farside, the Last Apollo mission to the Moon. Jim Lovell: "We have come, the beginning of the end. Let us raise our eyes to the next goal." *Saturn V *Command module: Alpha CM-117 *Lunar module: Omega LM-16 Category:Historical Category:Space Category:Technology